What does this poo tell you? 3 y/o hen. Ascites drained yesterday. Thank you!!

[Jessmidwest]

https://imgur.com/a/i0cfUCc

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome To BYC

Hard to know what it means.

If your hen has the symptom Ascites, then she may have some type of organ failure and/or reproductive disorder.

Is she having any other symptoms - is she lethargic, not eating/drinking well?

 

[Jessmidwest]

Yes sadly I think we're dealing with organ failure. We drained 115mls off of her last night in a hail Mary effort. A huge amount continued to drain from the punctures that evening/overnight. She is eating and drinking a small amount (granted, I'm presenting her with a fruit/veggie/cheese/feed platter, that is the syringed with supplemented water, multiple times a day). Today, she did drink on a few occasions on her own free will. Her poo/pee is still unwell, but with some worms and possibly pecking at some of her standard feed, it turned a more typical color, but still too watery/milky overall. She did finally lay down independently today, and was making more of her typical mannerisms. My husband believes it's because we 'threw the kitchen sink at her,' which is true. We did visit a vet at their home on Sat and started IM ABX, but we d/c'd that effort today. I don't really feel comfortable with antibiotics without a specific indication-she's not worse without them (yet). She did also have some pain meds earlier today on a worm. Another vet appointment in the clinic tomorrow to hopefully get an appropriate dx. I was originally so hopeful that the cause of the ascites would be correctable, but that hope is all but gone. The ascites doesn't seem to be significantly different from this am to pm. But, she's just not right. Lethargic. We took her out today for a short while (cold), but she only walked around. No scratching, and only pecked around a few times. We really love our birds and we're both devastated to think the end is near. I only hope to keep her comfortable and loved as long as possible. Thanks for replying, it's been a really tough day.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your chicken with ascites. I see that you have started another thread about her having a heart murmur. Rather than starting new threads, you can continue to update this one with new information. Since ascites is eventually fatal, and can be caused by many different issues including fatty liver disease, reproductive infections, cancer, and heart problems (more common in meat birds,) I probably would not spend that much money on a vet. But that is up to you. I have become pretty fond of my chickens, and it is tough to lose one that way. Hopefully, she doesn’t suffer too much.